CUSTOM LAND ROVER SANTANA 2500
AT A GLANCE
ENGINE: 2.5L “12J” diesel
TRANSMISSION: Five-speed manual with two-speed 4WD transfer case
BODY STYLE: “90” or “110” body styles, hard top, soft top, or both.
EXTERIOR: Your choice of color and wheels
INTERIOR: Your choice of color and materials
PRICE: from $33,900 plus shipping.
AVAILABILITY:
To this point, we we have been building 5 bespoke Santana 2500’s per year. No more. Moving forward into 2025 and beyond, we will likely take still fewer of these projects. That said, we are currently accepting Santana 2500 orders for 2025 delivery. If you would like one, please fill out the pre-order form below and we will contact you shortly.
What is a Santana 2500?
Santana lovers will tell you it’s 90% of a Defender for 60% of the price. Critics will tell you it isn’t a Land Rover at all. And although there’s a smidge of truth at both extremes, the reality is somewhere in the middle.
Between 1959 and 1983, Land Rover in Solihull, England built vehicles in Linares, Spain under official license, using a company called “Metalurgica de Santa Ana,” or “Santana.” In 1983, when the official license with Solihull ended, Land Rover introduced the Defender series and Santana continued on, rolling out their own “Defender” type product, called the 2500. Both the Defender and the 2500 used the 2.5L diesel engine, and both used the Santana 5-speed transmission. Both vehicles had power steering, front disc brakes, roll-up front windows and more comfortable interior appointments. But while the Defender was based on a new chassis, using long-travel coil springs and full-time AWD (already proven refined and effective in the Range Rover line) Santana made do with an evolved Series III chassis, parabolic leaf springs, and a traditional 4WD system evolved from the Series III 88 and 109.
The result is something that looks a bit like a Defender and drives more like a Series III, which is perhaps why the Santana 2500 is sometimes referred to as a “Series IIIA” in Europe. Simple, rugged, and as astonishingly capable off road as any other Land Rover, the Santana 2500 is more relaxed than a Series III, longer legged and more powerful, too, and compares pretty decently in terms of refinement to a very early Defender. But as the Defender line evolved and matured, the Santana 2500 model didn’t, and by the time the 200Tdi engine appeared in the Defender in 1991, the Santana 2500 was feeling a bit like an old tractor by comparison.
That said? A Santana 2500 is a HOOT to drive! Plucky, rugged and simple to own and operate, they really do offer an interesting blend of vintage “Series” truck appeal and modern Defender styling, at a price that’s hard to beat. We do a lot of custom Santana 2500 builds, and once you drive one you’ll know why.
What will it look like?
What you see in the gallery above are just a few of the bespoke Santana 2500’s we have built recently for clients, but how yours looks is totally up to you. Choose your body style, choose your paint color, choose what type of interior you want, and choose your wheels and tires and other details, and we get to work. Starting with a rust free, low mileage, and fully functioning donor, the exterior and interior are stripped for the color change, and the interior handcrafted in whatever combination of materials you'd like. Body is stripped and any flaws attended to, and the respray is done inside and out to a high standard. Wheels and tires are new, and the vehicle is reassembled, detailed to mimic in most ways a comparable Defender model, fully serviced and sorted, and test driven extensively to sort any niggles. Then we deliver it you, anywhere in the world, ready for daily use on road or trail.
So the finished truck is fully restored?
The word “restored” is a loaded one, and everyone has their own definition. In our minds? Absolutely not, it is not “restored.” We are starting with honest, healthy used vehicles. We are servicing them and checking them to insure proper operation. We are taking them apart and refinishing the bodywork, inside and out, in the colors we want. We are refurbishing the interiors in the colors and materials we select. We are reassembling them with the details and wheels and tires and finishing touches which suit our aesthetic. But they are used vehicles when we start and they are used vehicles when we are finished. And this means, in almost all cases, they are 30, and sometimes 40 year old unrestored Santana 2500’s. Each of them, because they are not 100-point nut and bolt restorations, have many parts on them that, while functioning fine, are old and worn. Each of them, because of their age and because of the nature of old Land Rovers in general, can and will fail at some point. If you want a 100-point nut-and-bolt restored vehicle, there are plenty of places where you can buy one, and we will be happy to refer you to those places, but if you want an honest, healthy, and beautiful classic vehicle, mechanical serviced and checked, cosmetically refurbished in the colors and with the interior materials and details you choose, we provide it for roughly one-fourth the price of a restored example.
What comes ‘standard’ on the build?
The following items are included in all our builds at no additional cost:
- Complete strip and respray of the bodywork in your choice of color(s)
- Your choice of front grille from available choices
- Your choice of upholstery colors for seats, using high-quality German-made synthetic leather and/or available cloth
- Center console with integrated cup holders and cubby box lid upholstered to match interior
- Full hand-cut carpeting throughout the interior, front and rear, in your choice of available colors
- (5) stock steel Santana wheels in your choice of color
- (5) New all-terrain tires
- New Defender-style lighting front and rear
- Full mechanical check over
- Starting price: $33,900
Are there any optional extras?
This is a bespoke build, and many things are possible, but below are some of the common optional extras people ask for, including pricing for each:
- Soft top conversion ($6,600 - includes three new doors, painted to match)
- Matte-finish paint on bodywork ($850)
- NATO “Wolf” wheels and 235/85-16 all-terrain tires ($1650)
- Full leather upholstery ($1250)
- Heated front seats for driver and passenger ($370)
- Wood rimmed steering wheel with 3 silver spokes, or black leather steering wheel with 3 black spokes. ($550)
- “Swingaway” rear tire carrier for spare wheel ($500)
- Sound deadening/anti-vibration panels underneath interior carpeting ($400)
- High-build, rust-deterring undercoating spray on chassis rails and crossmembers ($450)
- Two round 6” auxiliary driving lights mounted on front bumper
- Twin 12 volt charging ports in rear cargo compartment ($200)
- Twin USB charging ports in dashboard or center console ($200)
Is there anything you cannot do?
Yes. We cannot change engines or transmissions here, as doing so would make the vehicle illegal for import into the USA. The same applies to suspension lifts, which complicate transportation and importation. We also do not offer stereo, speaker or navigation installations, as these are best handled with an installer local to you.
Any additional costs?
Just shipping, which is currently $3,900, all-included, to the available east coast ports in the USA. Port-to-port cargo insurance is also available to protect your investment during shipping, and it is $500.
How long does it take?
The actual build takes about 16-20 weeks, give or take, but sourcing a proper Series donor in your chosen specification will add to that time. We work under the motto “good in, good out,” which means we do not start from rusty, damaged vehicles. We only build from correct, proper, rust free, mechanically excellent donors, and finding a proper one for certain custom Series builds can take a bit of doing. But generally speaking, figure about 30 weeks to source a proper donor and complete the build, as an average. But this is only an average. Sometimes all the stars align and we get yours done more quickly. Other times the stars are… going supernova or something and it takes longer. We cannot, unfortunately, build vehicles backward from an arbitrary completion date. We can only build them forwards based on what each vehicle needs, and how the builds in front of yours progress. If you need a vehicle by a certain date, and it’s inflexible, do not order a custom vehicle, either from us or anyone else. It’s simply not possible to guarantee delivery dates.
What are the terms, and how do I pay?
Typical terms are 50% of the price of the vehicle as a deposit to get started, with the balance due, plus shipping, when the vehicle is completed and ready to ship to you. In some builds with a large number of expensive front-loaded options (such as air conditioning, “Loc n’ Fold seating, exotic wheels and tires, etc) the deposit to get started may be slightly higher in order to cover the costs of ordering those parts. All payments are by bank transfer in US dollars.
Do you finance? Can I pay by credit card or PayPal?
No, I am sorry. We do not offer financing and we do not accept credit cards or PayPal for payment.